Welding is a process that has increasingly become ubiquitous in all industries. While such processes can be automated in certain contexts, a large number of applications continue to exist for manual welding operations. The success of these welding operations relies heavily on the ability of the operator to clearly see the arc, the weld, and the workpiece using welding headwear that simultaneously protects the eyes of the operator.
This can be difficult since the range of luminosity is great from the arc, which is intensely bright, to the weld and/or the workpiece, which are substantially less bright or are merely ambient bright. The welding headwear can employ a fixed, dark shade lens to reduce the intensity of the arc; however, the weld and the workpiece would be darkened as well, thereby reducing the visible details in those areas. Of course, a fixed, less dark shade lens would allow more light to come in from the less bright areas or the ambient bright areas; however, the operator would be exposed to a greater arc intensity, thereby risking the eye safety of the operator, and the greater arc intensity would effectively bleach out any details in the less bright areas or the ambient bright areas.